Pot au feu is a classic French beef stew that is hearty, flavorful, and perfect for a cold winter day. The name "pot au feu" literally means "pot on the fire," and this dish is traditionally made in a large pot over a low heat. The beef is typically cooked with vegetables such as carrots, celery, onions, and turnips, and the broth is often thickened with a roux. Pot au feu is a delicious and comforting dish that is sure to please the whole family.
Check out the recipes below so you can choose the best recipe for yourself!
POT AU FEU
This hearty stew throws in everything but the kitchen sink. You should have leftovers.
Provided by Martha Stewart
Categories Food & Cooking Ingredients Meat & Poultry Chicken
Number Of Ingredients 29
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange veal bones in a heavy-bottomed roasting pan. Place in oven and roast, turning occasionally, until light golden brown, about 1 hour.
- Transfer veal bones to a 20-quart stockpot. Tie up each short rib with kitchen string. Add short ribs, brisket, and enough cold water to cover the meats (about 6 1/2 quarts). Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium, and skim off any fat and scum that form on the surface. Simmer for 30 minutes, skimming as necessary.
- Trim dark-green tops from leeks, and reserve them. Cut leek bottoms in half lengthwise, and place in a bowl of cold water. Soak for 10 minutes to rid them of sand. Lift out, drain, and set aside. Add onions, 2 medium carrots, half the leeks, and 1 tablespoon salt to the stockpot. Wrap thyme, garlic, white and black peppercorns, cloves, parsley stems, and bay leaves in cheesecloth, tie with kitchen string, and add to stockpot along with 1 quart water. Return to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and let simmer. After 1 hour and 15 minutes, turn on oven to 425 degrees. and preheat for 15 minutes.
- Prepare chicken: rinse it inside and out, pat dry, tie the legs together with kitchen string, and tuck wing tips underneath body. Place in a roasting pan, and roast until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Transfer to the simmering stockpot, and add water to cover (about 3 quarts). Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 45 minutes (the stock should simmer a total of 2 hours and 45 minutes), skimming the surface as necessary. If the chicken cannot be completely immersed in the water, turn it after 20 minutes to ensure even cooking.
- Remove stockpot from heat. Remove the meat and chicken from the stockpot; set meats aside. Strain the broth into a large bowl through a cheesecloth-lined sieve, and discard solids. Let meat and broth cool, and refrigerate them overnight.
- Continue the preparation the next day. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Rub salt on cut sides of marrow bones. Rinse the reserved leek tops in cold water, and cut into 20 strips, 1/2 inch by 9 inches. Crisscross 2 strips of leek tops over each marrow bone, and bind with kitchen string. Place marrow bones in a small roasting pan, and add just enough cold water to cover (about 1 1/2 cups). Cover roasting pan with aluminum foil, and bake until marrow is opaque, about 1 hour. Remove from oven, keep covered, and set aside.
- Meanwhile, remove broth from refrigerator, and skim off any fat that has solidified on the surface. Return the broth to the 20-quart stockpot, and bring to a boil. Add remaining leeks, and cook over medium-high heat for 25 minutes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Add brisket, short ribs, chicken (cut in half), celery hearts, baby carrots, and potatoes, and cook until vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes more.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add haricots verts, and cook until tender but still slightly crunchy, about 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, and set aside in a medium bowl; cover with aluminum foil. To the same water, add cabbage, and cook over medium-high heat for about 15 minutes. Add turnips and cook until both are tender, about 15 more minutes. Drain, cut each cabbage wedge in half, and set aside in a large bowl; cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.
- Slice baguette diagonally into 1/2-inch slices, and toast on a baking sheet in the heated oven until golden brown, about 10 minutes.
- When all the vegetables are tender and the meats and chicken are warmed through, remove meats and chicken from broth. Prepare the meats and potatoes for serving (and keep them, covered, in a warm oven while you complete the process): slice the brisket into 1/4-inch slices. Remove bones from chicken breast; cut each half into three pieces, and cut legs from thighs. Untie short ribs, remove gristle, and cut each piece in half. Cut potatoes into 1/4-inch slices. Adjust the seasoning of the broth with salt and pepper to taste. Divide meats, chicken, marrow bones, vegetables, and broth among eight serving bowls. Serve immediately with toasted bread, mustard, olives, cornichons, horseradish, and salt. Strain any remaining broth through a fine-mesh strainer, and freeze for future use.
POT-AU-FEU STEW
Pot-au-feu fills the kitchen with the unmistakable aroma of simmering root vegetables. Almost any combination of meat and vegetables can be used, but aim for lean, flavorful cuts of meat and vegetables such as carrots and parsnips that make the broth extra sweet. This dish also makes the perfect leftover lunch or snack. Cold months are perfect for pot-au-feu, which means "pot on fire" in French.
Provided by Martha Stewart
Categories Food & Cooking Ingredients Meat & Poultry Beef Recipes
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- In a large, heavy stockpot over medium heat, brown the meat. Add the chicken stock, vegetables, and herbs and bring to a simmer, about 20 to 30 minutes, until the vegetables are fork-tender. Raise the heat if necessary to maintain the simmer.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the meat to a cutting board. Spoon the vegetables among 4 large shallow bowls. Ladle some broth into each bowl. Slice the meat into 8 slices and spoon 2 slices into each bowl.
POT-AU-FEU
Provided by Bon Appétit Test Kitchen
Categories Soup/Stew Herb Potato Bastille Day Dinner Beef Rib Brisket Carrot Fall Winter Potluck Bon Appétit Peanut Free Tree Nut Free Soy Free
Yield Makes 8 servings
Number Of Ingredients 41
Steps:
- For brine:
- Bring first 5 ingredients and 8 cups water to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar and salt dissolve. Remove from heat; let cool to room temperature. Place brisket and short ribs in a large baking dish. Pour brine over to cover completely. Cover and chill for at least 8 hours or overnight. Remove meat; rinse and set aside.
- For bouquet garni, meats, and vegetables:
- Place first 6 ingredients in center of a triple layer of cheesecloth. Gather up edges; tie with kitchen twine to form a bundle for bouquet garni. Wrap marrow bones in cheesecloth; tie into a bundle with twine. If desired, tie oxtails with twine around circumference to keep meat from falling off bones.
- Place brisket, short ribs, bouquet garni, marrow bones, oxtails, beef bones, veal bones, veal breast, 2 chopped carrots, celery, and onion in a very large heavy pot. Add water to cover meat (about 7 quarts). Bring to a boil, skimming off any scum and fat that rise to the surface. Reduce heat and simmer, skimming occasionally, until short ribs are tender, 2-2 1/2 hours.
- Transfer short ribs to a 13x9x2" baking dish; add 4 cups broth from pot and tent with foil to keep meat warm and moist. Add sausage to pot; continue simmering until sausage is cooked through and remaining meats are tender, about 30 minutes longer. Transfer sausage, brisket, oxtails, and marrow bones to dish with short ribs.
- Place a large strainer over another large pot; strain broth, discarding remaining meats, bones, and other solids in strainer. (You should have about 10 cups broth.) Return broth to a boil; add rutabagas, cabbage, potatoes, and 2" pieces of carrots. Simmer until vegetables are tender but not mushy, about 30 minutes.
- For sauces and garnishes:
- Mix first 5 ingredients in a small bowl to make salsa verde. Season with salt and pepper; set aside. Stir crème fraîche and horseradish in another small bowl; season with salt.
- Transfer vegetables to a platter. Thinly slice brisket against the grain; cut sausage into 2" pieces. Return meats to baking dish.
- Season broth in pot to taste with salt and pepper; divide among bowls. (Reserve broth from meats for another use.) Serve meats and vegetables with salsa verde, horseradish crème fraîche, and both mustards in small bowls alongside. Serve with toasted country bread.
CLASSIC FRENCH POT AU FEU - CROCK POT OR LE CREUSET
Pot au Feu is French for "pot on the fire". In other words, a stew or stock pot which is left cooking over the fire. In previous times, it may simply have been a cooking pot which was left over the fire, into which was thrown whatever food and scraps happened to be available. Often the meat was either scraps, or relatively poor cuts which needed a long time to cook in order to be tender. In historical terms, it was a dish for relatively poor people. Today in France, you can buy "pot au feu" meat. Expect this to be meat which reflects the historical background of this dish: relatively inexpensive and inferior cuts, which will soften with long slow cooking. While such meat is quite adequate for a Pot au Feu, feel free to use better cuts if you wish. As a Pot au Feu is historically a stew-like dish of whatever meat and vegetables were available, there are no absolute guidelines about what it should contain. However, in general it will contain beef, some bones (such as ox-tail), vegetables (such as potatoes, carrots, onions, leeks, turnips) and herbs.
Provided by French Tart
Categories Stew
Time 10h40m
Yield 4 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 13
Steps:
- Crock Pot:.
- Combine all ingredients with the beef stock and cook on low 8 to 10 hours. Taste and adjust seasonings. Put the beef on platter and surround with the vegetables. Keep warm. Strain broth, skimming off fat, and add the flour - mix well and heat up gently until thickened. Serve separately in a gravy boat. Slice meat and serve accompanied with pickles and horseradish, French bread and butter.
- Traditional:.
- Brown meat in frying pan, adding salt and pepper. Sprinkle a little flour over the meat while turning over. Place meat into oven proof casserole dish or le Creuset.
- Briefly fry bacon, onions & garlic. Add the carrots and then the leeks and beef stock. Bring to the boil. Put everything into a large le Creuset or casserole dish, adding the turnips and potatoes last.
- Cook at low temperature (150C/300F) for about 5 hours or until the meat falls of the bone.
- Slice meat and serve accompanied with pickles and horseradish, French bread and butter. Serve the thickened jus in a gravy boat.
- Notes:.
- Depending on the meat being used, a Pot au Feu can be very rich. If you would like a leaner version, prepare it the day before and allow to cook overnight. Once cooled the fat will rise to the surface and it can be skimmed off. The dish can then be re-warmed.
- For a Pot au Feu with a Mediterranean flavour, modify the recipe by reducing the amount of meat, increasing the amount of vegetables and adding more herbs.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 2960.2, Fat 266.9, SaturatedFat 110.7, Cholesterol 371.2, Sodium 453.4, Carbohydrate 98.1, Fiber 14.9, Sugar 16.9, Protein 42.8
Tips:
- Choose the right cut of beef. Beef chuck roast, short ribs, and brisket are all good options for pot au feu.
- Brown the beef before stewing. This will help to develop flavor and color.
- Use a variety of vegetables. Carrots, celery, onions, leeks, turnips, and potatoes are all classic pot au feu vegetables.
- Add herbs and spices to taste. Thyme, bay leaves, parsley, and peppercorns are all good choices.
- Simmer the stew for at least 2 hours, or until the beef is tender.
- Serve the stew with crusty bread or mashed potatoes.
Conclusion:
Pot au feu is a classic French stew that is perfect for a cold winter day. It is a hearty and flavorful dish that is easy to make. With a few simple tips, you can make a pot au feu that your family and friends will love.
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